The Morning Shows

Many people get their first dose of news from the various network morning shows.  Looking only at the cable news offerings you have in alphabetical order:

• CNN:  Show is called American Morning, a guy-gal tag team who play it mostly straight, most "fair and balanced" of the morning cable gabfests.  Bit dull, but lots of news, so if it's info ya want, this is the one to watch.  Lefties and Righties often appear.
  
• Fox News:  Fox & Friends, smarmy group of two guys and a gal.  Opinionated, but good chemistry.  A bit factually-challenged (completely misunderstand polling, for example).  Same set of guests.  You'll never see a Democrat or liberal.  Least interesting of all the cable offerings.
  
• Headline News: Morning Express with Robin Meade, just in case you don't know here name it's there in the title. A little like getting your news from your teenage daughter.  Still, personable, likeable.  Light on info, heavy on fun.  Get your news with sugar.
  
• MSNBC:  I've grown to like Morning Joe.  Good cast of characters, interesting guest hosts.  Background music too loud sometimes, too many people talk at same time, but strangely I find this one the most compelling of all of the above.  Left and right presented, as well as Starbucks (the sponsor).
  
• Broadcast Shows:  I'm ignoring the three networks and their morning shows because, frankly, I never watch 'em.
  

Fox & Friends and Polls

I like to watch Fox & Friends in the morning. It's like picking at a scab: you know you shouldn't do it, you know it's bad for you, but you simply can't resist.

Over the last couple of weeks F&F spent a lot of time on public opinion polls, noting trends in John McCain's favor. Again, and again. Never mind the numbers didn't really support their bandwagon argument all that well, they were trying to create a sense of trend toward their favored guy -- McCain.

Transparent partisanship is okay, even by three smug faces who are journalistically clueless, but I noticed in the last few days they stopped mentioning polls. Why? Could it be that the momentum has all swung Barack Obama's way? Perhaps. Certainly the economy is a stronger issue for Obama, the war for McCain, and all the news about the economy gets worse and worse.

Is there really a bandwagon effect? Yes, the reporting of poll results can move a few people in the direction of the majority. But there's also an underdog effect, people shifting to support the candidate who is behind. Typically people who are predisposed to eventually vote one way or the other see or hear a poll and shift in the bandwagon or underdog direction, depending on their particular preferences. In other words, polls are often a wash when it comes to persuading people to move one way or the other.

So Fox & Friends probably won't be mentioning any more polls until their guy gets some momentum again. Assuming it's mostly McCain supporter watching these three lightweights, the poll reporting won't do all that much.